My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 
James 1:19-20

A hot-tempered man stirs up strife,
But he who is slow to anger and patient calms disputes. 
Proverbs 15:18

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There are so many things that provoke anger in us, and they seem to be increasing. Over-busy schedules, demanding work, noncompliant children, endless manipulative news cycles designed to anger and upset people, social media, politics, pandemics, wars and rumors of war, inflation, lack of sleep, and the person driving in front of me with one foot on the gas and the other on the brake. Thank God that unlike me—maybe you, too—He is slow to anger. Otherwise, we all would have been vaporized or abandoned a long time ago!

When I whole-heartedly surrendered my life to Jesus all those years ago, I had no idea how challenging and difficult following Him and learning to be more like Him could be. I distinctly remember driving in my car when God cautioned me about anger and the need to always pray if I was to be successful in following Him and growing in the character of Jesus. His prophetic Word continues to guide me.

 It seems that in every area of my life, there is always demonic encouragement to dwell on the wrongs done to me—both real and imagined. It’s often tempting to think negatively about people around me, which is an easy habit to fall into and can cause me to go through the day with a background state of irritability and anger. 

Fortunately, I have learned how to manage this powerful, natural human feeling so that it is useful, productive, and protective. It is through a long obedience in the same direction of walking with Jesus each day. When someone or something angers me, I ask God to be present in the situation and to give me insight into the other person as well as my contribution to the situation. Importantly, I have learned that I usually do not need to respond immediately, so I don’t. Trusting that the Holy Spirit foresaw everything and is present helps me resolve whatever it is that triggered me. I have not mastered myself such that I respond consistently in righteousness (right behavior; right relationship) every time, but by continuing to walk and talk with Jesus, I am usually peaceful, thereby helping others to also live peacefully. Having more self-control and deeper healing helps me keep things from escalating. Maybe even the other person or persons will catch a glimpse of Jesus.

Next Steps

Today, ask God to fill you with His peace and to help you with your own anger triggers. Here are a few things I have found that help when dealing with anger:

1. Practice praying honestly and directly with God, sharing your raw, unfiltered feelings—good, bad, or ugly. Find a Psalm that expresses anger and pray that to God, then ask how He would handle the situation. Listen or watch for His reply.
2. Consider reading the discipleship book A Long Obedience in the Same Direction by Eugene Peterson.
3. Try starting a journal where you can write your unfiltered pain and anger and prayers to God. This can be helpful for growing into a person who is filled with the Spirit and slow to anger.